Sexual and reproductive health

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Health systems

The Department of Reproductive Health and Research (RHR) conducts and supports research that addresses key gaps in the evidence base on how to strengthen health systems through health system financing reforms, improved governance and aid effectiveness innovations and partnerships with the private sector, and evaluation research on policy and broad-based programmes designed to achieve universal access to sexual and reproductive health

In recent years, thanks to private foundations
and major bilateral and global health
initiatives, resources for health care at the
global level have grown substantially. However,
in the area of sexual and reproductive
health, these funds are being directed
largely towards HIV/AIDS activities, and
overall this has resulted in a reduction in
external funds available for some aspects
of sexual and reproductive health (e.g. family
planning)

Too often, cost-effective, high-impact health commodities do not reach the women and children who need them. Some of the barriers to access include the lack of affordable products, lack of age-appropriate formulations- especially for children, weak supply chains, inadequate regulatory capacity at the country level to protect the public from sub-standard or counterfeit medicines that cause harm, and lack of awareness of how, why and when to use these commodities. The UN Commission on Life-Saving Commodities for Women and Children aims to increase access to life-saving medicines and health supplies for the world’s most vulnerable people.